Private Dancer
by ktoll9
Summary: AU: Everyone makes poor decisions in their lives. What matters most is how you handle and recover from them. Do you take responsibility or, do you blame others? Rated for language.
1. Chapter 1

_**Private Dancer**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 1**_

There are pivotal moments in one's life where they take a deep breath and wonder exactly why they're doing what they are doing, who they are, and what the people around them actually think of them. After the auditions for Sacred Lotus In The Mire, one such moment occurred for Kyoko Mogami.

Was she limiting her experiences by not considering some of the new offers she had? She thought for awhile on that subject and leafed through the new offers for modeling and several scripts that would take her overseas, far from home or at least what she considered home now. She took a long sip of the sake that the Okami had brought to her and thought deeply. She carefully read and examined the three offers and took into consideration that they would allow her to travel abroad without disrupting her acting career. She had already spoken to Moko-san and even she believed that Kyoko should take them to expand her horizons. She sighed. "Well... They do pay quite well." She murmured and took another sip, then shot Sawara-san a confirmation email for all three. R'mandy's Rock Star Line; Secrets' Princess Collection and finally Cygne Noir for their perfume: Seduction and several of their makeup products. What made these offers even more appealing was that they had several amenities that would provide her with their products as long as she was one of their models. She smirked at that. _Really can't go wrong with that. Free clothing and shoes, free makeup and perfume and I get paid for it! Hell yes!_ She took another sip.

She sighed deeply and realized that one of the offers was going to be a bit more difficult if she didn't develop a modeling persona to calm her nerves. For Secrets, it was going to be an insurmountable task without one. She would think on it later after making a few observations and speaking to Moko-san.

She leafed through the Acting offers. Her hand stopped on one that had a curious little pink post-it on it and froze a little.

 _[Kyoko-chan-, I have included this offer in your list. I am making it a LoveMe Mission for you. I firmly believe that this part will help you achieve one of your goals. I know very well that you can do this. I have witnessed your talents myself, so there is no denying it. You have an appointment with Nakazawa Wednesday morning at 8 am. Do not miss this opportunity. Your career depends upon it. -Lory Takarada.]_

She sighed. She had a hunch why she was meeting with the head of the Music Department, Takarada-san had to have heard her singing at some point. Although she didn't believe she sounded that good, he must have at least heard something he liked. Obviously Sho never did. She grimaced at the thought. She may have implied that she was basically over this revenge thing and how he had treated her, but there was always this little voice at the back of her mind that demanded satisfaction.

She thumbed through the script and decided that, other than a few somewhat explicit love scenes, it was quite good. She cringed a little, it wasn't like she wasn't old enough to do those scenes and something like this had been looming over her ever since she was emancipated and signed her contract.

"Well... I suppose I can't be the perfect, pure as the driven snow, Japanese Maiden forever." She did not look forward to the research she would have to do. It wasn't like she knew absolutely nothing about sex, it was just embarrassing to talk to others about it, much less act it out. She had been exposed to plenty when she worked at the Fuwa Ryokan and whether anyone else realized it or not, men had not always been very gentlemanly around her. In her younger teen years, working at the Ryokan, working at the restaurants, several other jobs and some male neighbors when she moved to Tokyo, she had been groped and fondled more times than she could count.

Sure Sho's kiss wasn't her first _French Kiss_ and it was very disgusting but to her, it was like all the others, it didn't count. What had really upset her that time was the fact that she never actually saw him that way, now that she though of it. Someone had mentioned that it was her first kiss and she just went with it so others wouldn't think she was some kind of loose woman. She snorted derisively and wondered what they would have thought of her second, very well-paying night job when they first came to Tokyo. One of the jobs she had quit when she discovered exactly what Sho thought of her.

 _ **FLASHBACK**_

She needed the money to keep the apartment that Sho had insisted on. She was determined to think of the job as just that, a job. She pushed her reservations about performing this type of job to the back of her mind. It was easy to with all of the tips she was bringing in from it. All she had to do was pretend she was someone else and shake her ass cutely, maybe sit in a lap or, two and occasionally take off her bra. It wasn't as if any of these men would ever see her again and she had even bleached her hair out in case they ever did. She was amazed at what makeup could do for a girl and a little temporary spray-on black dye could do for a cover-up.

Her roomie never even suspected. All he knew is, that he occasionally came home to a dark-haired, boring, girl with no sex-appeal. He didn't know that with her job, she could pay off the month's rent in one night. He never saw the flowers that she would occasionally spruce up her apartment with. He never knew about the expensive jewelry that her admirers would shower upon her in trying to convince her to date or, marry them in their drunken stupors.

"No sex-appeal my ass." She growled as she slipped on her stockings and smoothed them out in the dressing room.

"Something wrong, Amber?" Her friend asked as she groused while dressing.

"No..." She sighed and hung her head. "I was just very wrong about someone and got a wakeup call today." She admitted while pulling out her makeup and color contacts.

"Don't tell me it's that jerk you've been dating? Finally show his true colors?" Miki asked.

She sighed. "How did you know?" She asked as she ran the brush through her blonde hair.

Miki gave her a small smile. "I kind of expected something like this. Especially how you've described his behavior the past few weeks. I mean really... If he really cared about you, would you even be here? Would you be the only one paying the rent?" She tapped the card from LME that Kyoko kept tacked to her mirror. "You should audition. Show what you're made of, because I know you're more than this." She snapped her bra strap and giggled. "Not very many of us have your talent."

* * *

He may not have been the proper age to be in a place like this, but his drummer had highly recommended it to him. He had the hots for their main attraction. Amber was her name and she had the cutest little crescent-shaped birthmark on her left breast just below the nipple. She may not have had the ample DD cup that he was accustomed to, but she really knew how to use the B cup that she had. She was hot.

"What are you doing?" Sho asked as his Bassist dropped another 11,000 yen on the stage for her.

He smirked. "This is how you show the girls, your appreciation." He told him as Kyoko's garter pelted him in his chest and she giggled with a wink.

As Sho sat there and drooled over the little exotic dancer, the evening progressed and in her final act before she left the stage, her black lace cheeky panties came off to reveal a black sequined thong underneath. It was incredibly tantalizing. He had never witnessed something like this in all of his young life. Beautiful women taking their clothes off for him, no strings attached. The only thing he had to do was toss a few thousand yen on the stage and no commitments or, relationships involved. At the end of the evening, Sho and his band had dropped 500,000 yen on the stage for her and she felt very vindicated.

"Five month's rent. Not too bad. Too bad this was the only way I could get him to help out."

The next day, the day after Sho had her evicted from Fuji TV, she visited her landlord, had the locks on the door changed, quit all of her jobs except her job at the Darumaya. She really liked the older couple and they had treated her like a daughter.

 _ **END FLASHBACK**_

Sadly, it still pissed her off. He had walked in on her many times when they were living together and he obviously failed to notice that one little distinguishing mark on her when she was at the club. It proved exactly how little he thought of her.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2**_

* * *

Ren's mind was still in a jealous haze from that evening that Lory had shown him those photos of Kyoko and Sho kissing. He knew that there had to be a perfectly good explanation to it all, but after what he had discovered and seen as Cain Heel, he just couldn't shake the worst thoughts from his mind.

When he first saw her as Setsuka he was speechless. There was a certain familiarity to this particular look, that kept eating away at him, and for some reason he felt that he needed to completely cover her up. Was it the blonde hair or, the silver eyes? Was it the familiar looking curves that were normally hidden by more modest clothing or, was it the way that she stood so confidently before him and Lory?

 _ **FLASHBACK**_

He heard her gasp and it pulled him into consciousness as he stared at her in the doorway. Considering her former job, she was well past the point of being embarrassed by something like this. She looked up at him and smirked, deciding to use his own words against him. "What? Are you jumping in?" She asked as she watched him desperately fight to keep his eyes firmly planted on her face. He shook his head and grunted in the negative Cain Heel fashion. He couldn't get much more out of his voice satisfactorily.

Many things ran through his fevered mind at the moment. Among them were several songs pointing out the fact that she was only 17. He groaned inwardly because most of those songs ended exactly how he had wished for his night to end at the very moment, with his lips and hands all over her soft, pliant body and then the image had come to him. The image of where he had seen that particular little birthmark. _Amber_... He groaned again in agony as he leaned against the closed bathroom door. That thin little piece of wood that stood behind him to separate them and feed an imagination, that now had an almost complete image of the young woman he was madly in love with and lusting after even more than before. He knew now that every time he looked at her as Setsuka, it was quite possible that he was going to be picturing her in those delightfully sexy little sequined, black, thong panties and matching platform black, leather pumps, sliding sexily down that pole. "I can't do this." He lamented to the empty room. "She's going to kill me."

 _ **END FLASHBACK**_

After accidentally walking in on her bubble bath that one night, he decided it was all of the above, especially after he saw the cutest, most perfect little crescent-shaped birthmark on her left breast. It was all too much of a coincidence to deny it. She was the main attraction at the club that he was taken to for his 20th birthday, by Kijima and a few of the other male actors he knew. She was Amber. Now he understood why a girl with such beautiful blue eyes had such a name. It was because she had even more beautiful amber-colored eyes that distinguished her from the rest. If anyone she knew saw her, they would know her secrets.

Knowing all of this now, made him even more uneasy. _Is this why Fuwa kept pestering her? Did he know too?_ How would he even ask her something that personal without making himself look like some kind of stalking pervert? He didn't want her to think he was like Fuwa or, those men that send flowers and jewelry to exotic dancers in hopes of winning their hearts. Besides, that wasn't her anymore. Maybe she didn't want anyone to know. Perhaps that's why she had hidden her identity in the first place when she was dancing, to keep that part of her life a secret.

What pissed him off the more he thought about it, wasn't her former job but the fact that she had been possibly forced into it by that jackass' greed. She had mentioned having to work three jobs to make it possible for him to have the apartment he felt he was worthy of. After her feeling that she had to do something like that, he tossed her away and now he was trying to insert himself into her life even more. It made him want to rip out his vocal cords and serve them to him. If she had been doing it for herself, that would have been a different story, somehow he didn't think that was the case. Not with how modest she seemed at the moment or, maybe Amber was a façade like Ren was to Kuon. He shook his head in the negative at the thought. If she was really like that, she wouldn't have quit. Not with all the money the guys showered her with that night.

 _ **FLASHBACK**_

"Come on Baby... Just one little date?" A drunken Hidehito begged the little blonde vixen, from their table near the stage.

She smiled mysteriously and shook her head. "Sorry Sweetie, I don't mix business with pleasure." She told him in a breathy voice.

Hidehito laughed. "I'll convince you, you know."

She giggled and did another spin on the pole before pelting some guy across the room in the chest with her garter.

"Hey Sexy! It's my friend's Birthday!" Hidehito announced mischievously as his thumb motioned to Ren sitting next to him.

She smirked sexily then removed her cheeky panties and shot them at Ren via the waist like a rubber band, revealing a sexy little, sequined black thong. "Happy Birthday." She winked and blew Ren a kiss then gently shoved Hidehito back off the stage with the toe of her shoe as he had tried to climb up. "No, no you naughty boy." Leaving Ren to wonder why in hell he had agreed to come with this idiot in the first place. _Oh yeah, Boss says I don't get out enough._ He shook his head and sighed inwardly.

The music died down and the club roared with applause before she left, as she discretely gathered her earnings from the stage. Ren had to admit, she had gathered a nice little hefty stack of cash from that other table and his.

He looked down and he still had the pair of panties in his hand. Hidehito grabbed them and shoved them in Ren's jacket pocket. "Souvenir." He laughed and wrapped him on the back.

 _ **END FLASHBACK**_

He sat in his living room and nursed his drink as he twirled the little garment on his finger in deep thought. _Maybe I should give them back to her._ He smirked at the thought. He groaned. "I'm sure that would be a good conversation starter." He said sarcastically after thinking on it.

"No... If she wants me to know, she'll tell me. It's not like I'm not keeping things from her too." He decided that he would wait until she brought it up herself, if she ever did. Until then, he would keep this little tidbit to himself. Her secret would never escape from his lips and if she did tell him, he would not judge and if Fuwa was privy to this information, he would make the rat-bastard suffer for his slights. Perhaps he should make him suffer anyway. He thought darkly and smiled wolfishly. After all, the ass did say she would never fall in love with him. _How the fuck would he know?_ Besides, he could always do everything in his power to change her mind. It wasn't like she hated him like she did Fuwa.

He looked up from his glass a little surprised and chuckled. "Exactly! How the fuck _**would**_ he know anything like that? It's not like she would tell the person she hated most something like that and she certainly wouldn't kiss him willingly either." He remembered the state she was in when he had found her in the park and the memory placated him. "God, I am so stupid! How could I think like that?" He shook his head feeling like an ass for even thinking that she had willingly kissed Sho.

He sat his glass back on the coffee table and stared at the tiny garment in his hand and blushed. Now that he knew who they really belonged to, a thought kept entering his mind. A thought that made him feel like some kind of sexual deviant. Out of curiosity, he brought the small bundle of silk and lace to his nose and inhaled deeply. His mind clouded. God she smelled so damned good and the scent was still strong after all this time. He groaned as his libido kicked in from the self-torture and decided it was time to quell his instinct with a cold shower and store his little treasure.


	3. Chapter 3

_**The song used in this chapter is: Army of Me by Christina Aguilera originally sung by Anastacia (I do not own it, Lol.)**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 3**_

The script was about a singer's trek through the entertainment world, beginning as an exotic dancer on the side while she nurtured her music career incognito. She cringed, it hit a little too close to home on that one. She hoped that said singer wasn't a blonde with silver eyes like Amber. She prayed that the director had never seen her dance at the club. What would the odds be for something like that?

She looked in the mirror as she toweled off and stared at the telling little blemish. She would definitely have to use makeup to cover that up or, anyone that watched the movie that had seen Amber at the club, would know in an instant.

She sighed as she wrapped herself in the towel. She still had to dress and eat breakfast and it was already 6:30. Her appointment was in a hour and a half. She quickly dressed, spritzed on some perfume, dabbed on some makeup and brushed out her now long black hair that had been styled with extensions for Sacred Lotus. She braided it and then made one last check in the mirror. She made sure the three contracts for modeling, the contract for the other drama she decided on and the one for the movie were in her bag and made her way down to eat. After next week, she was going to be quite busy. "Thank goodness Yashiro-san will be helping me out."

* * *

"Kyoko-chan... Why don't you let me be the judge of that? I think that Takarada-san knows what he's talking about when he spots talent." Nakazawa told her in a comforting voice as she tried to convince him that she had no talent in singing or, dancing. Oh, he knew. He was the one that had brought it to Lory's attention.

Kyoko groaned in despair. There was no way she was getting out of the embarrassment this was going to cause. Sho had always covered his ears and complained that she sounded like a cat that was being tortured. He had told her so many times in fact, that she actually believed it was true and as far as dancing was concerned... Well, she had plenty of experience in that, but it wasn't the kind of dancing that they were looking for, she was certain of it. "Fine..." She groused as she snatched the music sheet from the startled man. "Just remember that I warned you. I sound horrible."

Nakazawa smirked inwardly at her stubbornness. He turned to the workstation in front of him and motioned for her to enter the sound booth and put on the headphones. He flipped a switch. "Are you ready?" He asked through the intercom.

She nodded and gave him a thumbs up before he started the music for her; what he had heard floored him. _How on Earth could she even think that she was a bad singer?_ _She sounds like an angel._ His eyes glimmered at the thought. _I knew I_ _was right._ He was thanking his lucky stars that he had the wherewithal to record her session. He was actually considering at the moment to burn a copy for himself before giving the track to Takarada-san.

* * *

"But..." Kyoko pleaded.

Lory held up his hand to stop her from saying anything else and shook his head. "Mogami-kun... Are you an actress?" He asked sternly and she nodded in the affirmative. "As I thought... Now, do you or, do you not believe that an actress should use all of her talents and resources to give her best performance?" He asked firmly appealing to her competitive side.

"Absolutely Takarada-san!" She exclaimed.

He smirked mischievously. "Good, then I expect you to do just that, beginning on Monday. You will report to the address I have given to you and do everything that your instructors tell you. I've scheduled your lessons around your jobs. Yashiro already knows. He will make sure that you're on time."

Kyoko sighed in defeat. There was just no way out of this, was there? "Yes, Shachou."

"Good, you're dismissed. Have a good weekend." He told her cheerily. Of course he was happy. He was so happy that he was practically bursting at the seams. The track that Nakazawa had emailed him, sent him over the moon. She could easily surpass Japan's number one singer if she one day decided. Perhaps he should just give her a little push along in that area. Maybe it would help her get over the feelings of inferiority and revenge Yashiro and Ren had told him about. With an evil glint in his eyes he typed out the email and added the attachment that he had incorporated in a video clip of her in her many characters, along with her recent secretly recorded dance audition. He eagerly clicked send and with that, the storm began to brew.

* * *

Kuu curiously opened the email that Lory had sent him and clicked on the video attachment. What he had found blew him away. It was his sweet little pseudo-daughter singing a song in English, in the background with candid clips of her as Mio, Natsu, a very punky looking stylish blonde and Momiji, they were all rounded off with a clip of her dancing in several different styles in between. It was amazing to behold and he knew exactly what to do with said clip. Lory had given him permission to distribute as he pleased, and indeed he did. The video would grace every social networking site he belonged to. In less than 24 hours, she had gone worldwide thanks to her oya-baka pseudo-father, a tendency that Lory had wholeheartedly counted on.

 _I've been standing where you left me_ (A clip of her when she first entered LME was shown. She had looked so bewildered and lost in the clip) _  
Praying that you'd come and get me  
But now I've found my second wind  
Now I found my second skin _(A mini-clip of her recording the song, gathered from security footage but altered to look intentional. She looked blissful as she swayed to the music and her head bobbed.) _  
Well I know what you were thinking  
You thought you'd watch me fade away  
When you broke me into pieces  
But I gave each piece a name_

 _One of me is wiser_ (A video of Mio began and cycled through all of her characters.) _  
One of me is stronger, one of me is a fighter  
And there's a thousand faces of me  
And we're gonna rise up  
And we're gonna rise up  
For every time you broke me  
Well you're gonna face an army, army of me_

 _Welcome to my revolution_ (A clip of her dancing to the beat with a blissful look on her face played) _  
All your walls are breaking down  
It's time you had a taste of losing  
Time the table's turned around  
I see a glimpse of recognition  
But it's too late ugh it's too late  
And what you though was your best decision  
Just became your worst mistake_

 _One of me is wiser  
One of me is stronger _(Now Natsu was flashing across the screen then the video morphed to Setsuka) _  
One of me is a fighter_ (then came Momiji and the images rotated between her personae) _  
And there's a thousand faces of me  
And we're gonna rise up  
And we're gonna rise up  
For every time you broke me  
Well you're gonna face an army, army of me_

 _So how does it feel  
To know that I beat ya  
That I can defeat ya  
Oh how does it feel  
'Cause it sure feels sweeter  
It sure feels sweeter to me  
Now that I'm wiser _(A photo of Mio) _  
Now that I'm stronger_ (morphed into a photo of Natsu) _  
Now that I'm a fighter_ (then a photo of Momiji) _  
There's a thousand faces of me_ (finally a photo of her leaning against a brick wall with a sexy smirk as Setsuka) _  
And I'm gonna rise up  
I'm gonna rise up  
For every time you broke me  
There's a thousand faces of me  
And I'm gonna rise up  
Yeah I'm gonna rise up  
For every time you broke me  
You're gonna face an army  
Army of me _(the video ended with her singing the song in the recording studio as Nakazawa listened. All clips had been secretly recorded by many security cameras and the many talents of Ruto, edited and mixed by Lory Takarada himself.)

* * *

Kyoko, not being your typical starlet that enjoyed immersing herself in the trappings of social media, had no idea what was happening as she spent her weekend on her homework and working at her job at the little restaurant that she called home. Her video, that Lory had sent Kuu, had taken the world by storm. Not just because of her talented voice, but also because of her many faces.

Lory couldn't have possibly known the fire that he had started. It all began with that first call and showed no sign of ending even 230 messages later, requesting the talents of his beautiful little LoveMe #1 by record producers and labels, and movie producers and directors from all over the world. She was a rare commodity. All of that talent and she was, at the very least bi-lingual. As far as anyone could tell, she was fluent in English, to the extent that lacked an accent completely.

When she entered the employee entrance of LME on Monday morning she noticed the front of the building inundated with hundreds of screaming fans. Who the fans were for, she wasn't sure. She wondered if Tsuruga-san had a new movie that had been released or, if Ruriko had cut another popular album.

"Is there a press conference, Sawara-san?" She asked innocently.

He looked at her as if she had sprouted another head. "Mogami-san, those people out there are for you. Your PV was released over the weekend or, did you forget?"

She furrowed her brow. "PV? I haven't done anything like that. There must be some kind of misunderstanding."

Sawara sighed and pulled up his social media account, then clicked on the link to her video that had been taking the world by storm.

" _ **EEHHH?!"**_ She howled and felt lightheaded.

After all was said and done, he informed her that Takarada-san wanted to see her about the transfer of her contract to LME International. Now she really felt faint and the day hadn't even started properly.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter 4**_

* * *

He was livid. He had been in Deva-King mode from the moment he saw her PV Friday afternoon. He ranted and raved about the nerve that idiot, soul-sucking, shape-shifting demon woman had, to meet him in his own profession and the fact that she had hit number one, on all of the social media charts, did not escape him. He had thought that he quashed that competition years ago. Admittedly she improved by leaps and bounds, she was good from the beginning, but for her to brazenly step into the music world, pissed him off more than anyone could possibly imagine. It took him two years to rise to the top and here she had done it literally overnight. There were even comments and rumors attached to the video that she was being scouted overseas for a recording contract by no less than three International companies.

He looked up at his manager in thought. "Shoko-san... I want to go international." He told her as if she could snap her fingers and make it happen.

Shoko furrowed her brow. "Sho... You aren't ready for that yet." She hated to break it to him, but he truly wasn't ready. His music style was not that in demand overseas and his language skills were severely lacking.

"What do you mean I'm not ready?! I've been working my ass off for the past two years!" He shouted in anger.

Shoko sighed. "Sho..." and here is where she told him. He would have to study. He would have to adjust his music style to be more accommodating to other audiences, not just the young women he wanted to sleep with, and he would have to learn and become fluent in other languages.

The revelation angered him even more. He didn't have time for such nonsense! How dare they make him change! If they didn't like his music, they shouldn't listen to it! And there inlaid the problem, he was just too inflexible and lazy to do what he needed to, to actually climb to the pinnacle. He had limited himself to Japan, whereas Kyoko had not. However, he just didn't see it that way.

He sat back down after his rant and the reprimand that Shoko gave him and thought deeply. How was he going to fix this problem? He had stifled that idiot's ability to act in a romance with the bet. He was certain that it worked, so how would he prevent her from making her debut in the music world? Perhaps the arranged marriage his parents implied? She couldn't possibly go against anything that her husband dictated. People would hate her for it. He smirked at the thought. "Shoko, I have an announcement I need to make."

 _ **~xoxo~**_

Lory pulled her into a big friendly hug and had her sit on the sofa in his office. "Now, since you are emancipated and can make all of these decisions for yourself... What do you think about an International Debut, Mogami-kun?" It was something that he hadn't even offered Kuon yet. Although, he firmly believed that since the boy still hadn't admitted to anyone who he was yet, he felt that he just wasn't ready for it.

"I-International?" She stammered. "Are you serious?"

Lory nodded. "You have been able to act the full range of emotion required to graduate LoveMe and I have transferred your contract to LME International already. All that is really left for you to do is pick a film. You have about 10 Hollywood producers and directors that have expressed an interest." Lory informed her. There had actually been more over the weekend, but he and Ruto had gone through most of her offers over the weekend as they came in and picked the 10 most prominent, that would give her the most exposure, with the highest pay.

"Of course! I'll do it!" She froze a little and looked at him a little worried. "But... What about my modeling contracts that I agreed on and _**Starshine**_ and _**Sacred Lotus**_?"

Lory chuckled. "The modeling contracts can be worked around and the filming for _**Starshine**_ and _**Sacred Lotus**_ will end before any of these start. You are in the final phase of filming _**Sacred Lotus**_. Yashiro informed me that it will end in about... Hmm... six weeks?" He nodded. "So there really shouldn't be a problem. Now for another matter at hand... All those people out there... are for you and for your safety, I cannot have you riding your bicycle in anymore or, living in a public restaurant. You are going to have to move into LME owned housing for your own protection."

"But..." She started and he stopped her again.

"And I would also like to test your ability for writing songs. I am aware that you grew up with Fuwa-san, so I have every confidence that you have picked up a little something along the way. So, don't try to get out of it or, I will make that a mandatory LoveMe mission too. You haven't graduated quite yet." He warned her.

Kyoko sighed in defeat. _How did it ever come to this?_ She groused inwardly. _So much pressure._ Could she really do something like this? It wasn't like she never wrote anything herself when she and Sho were younger. She just never shared it with anyone. Could she still do it?

* * *

"NO! Absolutely not, Sho! I will not release a statement like this for you and if you do it on your own, you can find yourself a new manager! Something like this only makes you look desperate and will portray her as a victim of an archaic practice. Not only that, they will start digging around in your relationship with her and other girls if you do something like this. Are you sure you want that to happen?" She warned.

"I don't see a problem with that." He said flatly.

Shoko had recently discovered his behavior on Valentine's Day when Asami had spoken to Hiroaki, she had been there for his treatment of her that led to him slapping her in his dressing room, and his driver had told her about how the date between them seemed more like a kidnapping. He didn't want to be involved in something like that, and it had been bothering him for months when he finally broke down and told her. Shoko was livid. She narrowed her eyes at him. "So... You're okay with being accused of sexual assault, kidnapping and physical abuse?"

Sho's head spun around and gave her a shocked look. "What the hell do you mean?! _**That**_ never happened!"

She raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow at him. "Really?... So you weren't aware that forcing yourself on her in front of witnesses... _**twice**_... was considered sexual assault? Oh and let's not forget handcuffing her and forcing her into your car, then removing her from school grounds is considered kidnapping. Lest we forget... You slapping her and leaving a cut on her face or, when you grabbed her wrists and left bruises... Physical abuse."

His mouth was agape. Sure all of those things happened, but it certainly wasn't like he raped her or, put her in the hospital. "But..."

She held up her hand. "No Sho... No buts... This is what the press will find and see if you try to do what you're thinking of. Whether you know it or, not... they _**will**_ find it. You weren't exactly discrete with your activities and the couple that she lives with, _how you got her address I'll never know_ , told me you have been there more times than you should for someone that isn't openly dating her." She continued to scold him. "What you are thinking of doing, makes you look desperate and like a stalker. Is that what you want your image to be?"

He flopped onto the sofa and pouted with his arms across his chest. "No..." He said in a small voice. She had a point.

She nodded, satisfied that her point had sunk in. "Good. Now, if you still have thoughts of going international, then I will make arrangements for you to learn the proper skills to do so. If not and you choose to stay here in Japan, then I suggest that you get off your ass, stop watching all of those talk shows that keep upsetting you and finish the music for that album you were supposed to have done a week ago." She left the sulking teen to absorb what she had said. She was done being the doting, whatever it was to him. She had an adult life and she was done catering to the whims of an oversexed, violent, spoiled, short-sighted child.


	5. Chapter 5

_**The songs in this chapter is: May It Be, By Enya and Say Something by Great Big World ft. Christina Aguilera; no, I don't own these either.**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 5**_

"You're going to hate it..." She murmured after Lory had asked to see what she had been able to create a couple of days later from their debut conversation. This was a side of her she preferred not to show her boss. Moko-san and Chiori-chan were okay, even Maria but certainly not Takarada-san. Corn was her little secret and right now, she preferred to keep him that way. She really didn't feel like being teased about it by him too.

Lory sighed. "Why don't you let me do my job Mogami-kun, and let me be the judge of that?" He took the music sheets from her, sat down and began reading.

 _May it be an evening star  
Shines down upon you  
May it be when darkness falls  
Your heart will be true  
You walk a lonely road  
Oh! How far you are from home_

 _Mornie utulie_ (She had a little question mark next to the words. She had figured that her fairy would be familiar with the Celtic language and decided to use them to make the song more tailored to who she intended it for.) _  
Believe and you will find your way  
Mornie alantie  
A promise lives within you now_

 _May it be the shadow's call  
Will fly away  
May it be your journey on  
To light the day  
When the night is overcome  
You may rise to find the sun_

 _Mornie utulie (darkness has come)  
Believe and you will find your way  
Mornie alantie (darkness has fallen)  
A promise lives within you now_

 _A promise lives within you now_

He looked up at her after reading the sheets of paper and smiled softly. "Kyoko-chan... This is beautiful. Why would you think that I would hate it?"

She blushed. "I wrote it for Corn..." She murmured.

He looked at her in shock. "You wrote this for Kuon? H-how..." He cleared his throat nervously. _Did he tell her already, without me knowing?_

She blushed further in embarrassment. "He's a fairy prince that was cursed... He needed my kiss..."

Lory rolled his eyes inwardly. _Of course that boy would do something like that! Sneaky..._ "I see. Does he know?"

She shook her head. "I thought that maybe it will make him feel better if he hears it." She whispered.

Lory smiled widely. "Mogami-kun, I'm sure that if he heard this... It would make his heart soar knowing that you care this much for him. Would you like to record it?"

She nodded shakily. "If you think that it's okay."

Lory nodded. "I think it would be perfect. It's a very comforting song; however, I would prefer that you write a couple of more songs at least. I really don't want this one to be your official debut song."

She nodded shyly. "Okay..." She said a little dejected.

"It is very good but, I want something that says something about you, not someone else. Something that tells the world how you feel. Something that defines you, then I will let you record this one and release it to be heard." Lory explained to her, not wanting to make her feel childish for the wonderful song she had written. "Mogami-kun... I would suggest you write about what we discussed on White Day."

She looked up at him horrified. "B-But... I-I can't do that." She whimpered.

He shook his head. "I promise that he won't find out it's him you're singing about."

"Are you sure?" She asked in a small voice.

He smiled softly. "I'm absolutely certain he'll never suspect and I will not breathe a word to him about it unless you ask." _That boy is so clueless he wouldn't guess even if she actually mentioned his name in it._ He sighed inwardly on all of the work he had yet to do with these two.

* * *

By the time the song that Lory had sent to Kuu had finished circulating and saturating every possible outlet, she had prepared three more to accompany the initial song that Nakazawa had given to her to sing. Lory had explained to her that the writer had just gone through a very difficult breakup with the person they thought was their soul-mate and had thought that she would be the perfect voice for it.

His explanation confused her. How had anyone heard her voice and decided something like that when it all seemed like a spur of the moment thing for him?

What he hadn't told her was that Nakazawa had heard her, and he was the one that brought her voice to Lory's attention when she had been quietly singing as she worked one of her LoveMe jobs in the music section several months ago. Nakazawa had heard rumors of why she had been in the LoveMe section, and when his wife had left him for one of her co-workers, he had written the song. He felt that Kyoko could relate to it, show the inner strength that the song required, then sprung the idea on Lory.

Nakazawa had known for quite some time that she had strength in music from that particular LoveMe assignment and also from when she had come to the music section to complete her characterization of Mio. She had signed up for violin lessons for one of the episodes that required it, and she had taken to the difficult task like a duck to water. She had also mentioned that she was able to read music and play the acoustic guitar, due to a former childhood friend, but she also rigorously claimed that she wasn't any good at it. He thought, that if it was the same childhood friend that told her she couldn't sing, it was quite possibly just the opposite.

"If she doesn't have anything for her debut album, I can write the songs for her Lory. A voice and talent like hers shouldn't be wasted on just one outlet." Nakazawa told him in an effort to convince him to allow it.

Lory laughed and shook his head. "She has several..." Lory looked up at the shocked man.

"Really?" He asked excitedly.

Lory nodded. "She's very well rounded in what she likes to listen to and write. I was quite impressed. That girl can go from soft, sultry and sweet to hard, sexy and cute." Lory handed him copies of the songs that Kyoko had written and the man sat quietly while looking over them.

He looked up at Lory when he was done and chuckled. "She's more like me than I thought. Who was the bastard that ruined her and broke her heart all over again?"

Lory's eyes went wide in surprise. "I certainly didn't expect _**that**_ from you." He smirked.

"Yeah well, it seems as though it's still happening. Did you not read the meaning of this one? She's basically given up here. She sounds so alone." He handed him the sheet and Lory looked at the one he was referring to.

 _Say something, I'm giving up on you  
I'll be the one, if you want me to  
Anywhere, I would've followed you  
Say something, I'm giving up on you_

 _And I am feeling so small  
It was over my head  
I know nothing at all_

 _And I will stumble and fall  
I'm still learning to love  
Just starting to crawl_

 _Say something, I'm giving up on you  
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you  
Anywhere, I would've followed you  
Say something, I'm giving up on you_

 _And I will swallow my pride  
You're the one that I love  
And I'm saying goodbye_

 _Say something, I'm giving up on you  
And I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you  
And anywhere, I would have followed you  
Oh, oh, oh, oh say something, I'm giving up on you_

 _Say something, I'm giving up on you  
Say something_

He shook his head. This was a very unfortunate, unexpected development. Was she actually giving up on Ren?

"You see? In these others she's telling off the first one, but the other one doesn't even see her. She's practically begging to be seen. Whomever it is, he's made her feel that she's just standing on the side in the shadows, she doesn't even know why she's waiting anymore. Lory, she's obviously giving up on him. Care to tell me who can't see that perfect little gem? Who's the idiot damaging her further?" He almost hissed in anger at him. He didn't like to see anyone suffer like he did.

Lory sighed. "It's a misunderstanding that may or, may not be resolved. It just depends upon how clueless both parties are. They both hide it quite well."

Nakazawa shook his head sadly. "No... No, she's not hiding it at all anymore. Have you seen her lately?.. I have. She's lost weight and it seems as though she's been losing sleep. Come down to the dance studio and you'll notice the significant difference from her first lessons. She doesn't wear tight clothes most of the time so one wouldn't notice in passing, but when she has her dance gear on, you can definitely tell. She's not too bad yet, but something needs to be done and soon." He informed him.

 _What the hell has been going on for the past few weeks?_ Lory groused inwardly. _Are Yashiro and Ren completely blind?_ He ranted internally and made a note to bring the pair in for a very probing discussion.

Lory sighed. "I'll look into it. Thanks for letting me know of this new development. We can't have one of our top idols wasting away mentally or, physically."

Nakazawa nodded. "Thank you Lory... I've been a little worried about her. At least I know why it's happening now." _Maybe something can be done about it. Maybe someone can help her._ He combed his mind for solutions to help out his favorite talent as he left the office after the meeting, not really realizing that his interests in LoveMe #1 seemed a little more than just concern for a talent under his care.

* * *

It wasn't that she hated her new very secure apartment, it was just so quiet and it brought to the front of her mind just exactly how alone she really was. After living at the Darumaya for so long with the Okami and the Taisho, then with Ren during her time as Setsuka Heel, she had become accustomed to having someone down the hall at least or, in the same room. A hot tear escaped and fell down the side of her temple onto her pillow, as she stared at the ceiling. "Not again." She whimpered and rolled over, getting up to heat up some water for herbal tea to calm herself. She sighed. "It's going to be another sleepless night."

She turned her phone back on to check to see if she had any messages. _37 from that ass and 15 from Corn. Jerks._ Yes, she had discovered once she moved into her new apartment and had a significant amount of quiet time to mull things over and surf the internet out of curiosity.

She looked out across her living room at the small moving boxes she had packed her belongings in to ship off to her temporary homes in New York then Los Angeles, that she would be staying in for the next... She didn't know how long. She had hoped that it would be long enough to recover and lock her heart back away where it belonged. She was tired of being hurt and used. She figured she would be able to do this as long as she didn't have to associate with any of them while she was there, and that would include the entire Hizuri clan after how they had used her to get Kuon to speak to his own father. She was done with that. The only people that she would be keeping in touch with were Kanae, Chiori, Maria, who was coming with her to visit her father, and Takarada-san, whom of which she had no choice, he was her boss.

At this point, she was beyond caring what Ren/Kuon, Yashiro-san or, Shotaro thought of her leaving without telling them good-bye. They could all rot in hell with Reino. Well, maybe not Reino. He told her the truth, now that she had time to think about it. Her busy mind finally settled as she sipped the warm chamomile tea and she stared out from her balcony at the city lights. _I'm not sure I'm really going to miss Japan._ The thought fleetingly crossed her mind and fluttered around. _Kanae and Chiori are going to work hard to meet me in L.A... Other than them, I really have no one here. Mother washed her hands of me when I was emancipated, Sho only wants me around to torment me and Ren/Kuon has whomever he has._ She snorted. _Whatever, I'm done with them. I don't need that in my life anymore._

She finished off her tea as the sun came up. She stood up and stretched out, deciding to put on a pot of coffee and nibble on an apple, only to toss it less than half-way through. She didn't have much of an appetite lately and even the three bites she had taken from the apple had been a grueling chore.

She needed to get ready. She had a busy day ahead. Dance lessons, song recordings, the last scenes for Momiji and her movie, her last lunch with Chiori and Kanae for awhile, and her three new modeling jobs in the afternoon. Then she would have to come home via the company car that Ruto drove to pick her up, and give him her moving boxes and luggage. Tomorrow she would be leaving, hopefully permanently. As long as she could at least talk to her best friends, she would be fine.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Chapter 6**_

* * *

 _I've never really had a place to call home or, a family._ She thought wryly as she watched the great Island of Japan disappear into the distance, over the water. _Not my mother, not the Fuwas. Well, maybe the couple at the Darumaya. I guess I was more like a stray dog that they took in to just do a job and take care of their stupid son, to the Fuwas; not to Taisho and Okami, but I was still probably only an employee._ She shook her head. That part of her life was done. She didn't want to think of it ever again. It was far too depressing. _Only being worthy of an 'I love you' born from a lie._ She flushed out the thought and calmed herself before the darkness took over once again, like it had so many times in the past few months.

She pulled out her new script to study and read as Maria slept a drugged sleep for the plane ride. She had been prescribed a sedative for anxiety for the plane ride. She was still suffering from her mother's death and she was terrified to ride the plane, but she really wanted to see her father. Kyoko admired her tenacity and her will to do anything to make it happen. "Poor kid." She murmured and stroked the sleeping child's hair gently. "I suppose if I had a parent that loved me that much I would probably do the same." She sighed and opened the script to take notes and continue character building. She had no idea that the child was making the sacrifice to be with her beloved Onee-sama. Seeing her father was just an added bonus.

She stared at the part in the script that had been bothering her the most. Then slapped her forehead gently and giggled. "It doesn't matter anymore. I don't even know why I thought to hide it for _**Starshine**_. If Sho even notices, he can't say anything because it would tell all of Japan that I was paying his way for almost a full year. He would also expose himself as being the type of guy that sponges off a woman and goes to clubs like that. The others won't even remember me. It's not like they would even go to movies..." She smirked. "Too drunk to remember." She rolled her eyes as she remembered Kijima-san's boisterous behavior, how he didn't recognize her and then froze as another face, the one she had pelted with her panties, popped into her mind. A sad frown crossed her lips and her brow furrowed. "So that's why he probably wanted to talk to me. He probably already knew." She remembered him walking in on her and she fought off the onslaught of tears with great difficulty. "Then I guess, it is my fault after all." She was getting the wrong idea, yet again.

She sighed at the revelation and looked up at the passing flight attendant. "Excuse me... Are we over international waters yet?"

He nodded at the cute, sexy actress. "I can get you something to calm your nerves, if you like."

"Please? Um... If you don't mind?" She asked in a small voice.

He smiled widely. "Of course Miss Kyoko. I would be happy to get that for you." He returned moments later with a short glass filled with orange juice and a tiny bottle of vodka. "This should do it for you. I know it always helps me when I'm tense."

She gave him a weak smile. "Thank you."

* * *

Lory looked up at him expectantly. He still hadn't revealed that Kyoko was on her way. "So... What did you think of her songs?" He wanted to see what his reaction was, kind of like the night he revealed those pictures to him.

Kuon rolled his eyes. "What do you want me to say? So, she wrote a love song for Fuwa."

Lory shook his head in disappointment. Kuon really wasn't ready if he couldn't see the truth of it. It angered Lory as much as Kuon's own jealousy was getting to him. Lory slammed his hand down on the desk. "You really are an ass! You know that? And you're an idiot! I never dreamed I would say that to you of all people. I never thought that you would be the one to chase her away with your indifference! Now I know why she left so eagerly. So who is it that you so easily replaced her with after you revealed that you were her fairy prince Corn?!" Lory asked angrily. Kyoko had told him everything about her childhood, Guam and her suspicions on his feeling towards Kimiko Morizumi. Lory had actually wheedled it out of her.

"What the hell are you talking about?! I never told her anything! And I haven't replaced her! She's been avoiding me and Yashiro for the past month!" He howled back at him.

"So you didn't reveal yourself to her in Guam, kiss her and tell her you loved her, then not mention a single thing afterwards?" He asked dryly.

"I..." He started to deny it, but the cat was now out of the proverbial bag and there was no putting it back in. He groaned. "I did..." He raked his fingers through his hair.

"As I thought...So, she discovered the truth without you telling her, obviously." Lory glanced at him; although, none of the three had guessed properly why she had willingly left.

It wasn't because of Ren's secret. She had a pretty big secret herself. Certainly it had irritated her quite a bit, but not enough to leave. She had left because, seeing his face and imagining him with someone else was killing her inside. She knew she wouldn't be able to be calm and cordial to any woman he picked.

If she wasn't there, taking up all of his free time, he would certainly be able to spend the time that she shared with him, with the girl that he had been in love with. She was doing this for him. That's what she kept telling herself.

It wasn't that she couldn't stand to see him with another woman, no. It wasn't that she was growing weary of Sho's constantly reminding her of the secret bet he had forced her into or, that he called her night and day, leaving endless messages on her newly disconnected phone number, then seeking her out because she didn't answer, to hound her about how stupid, boring, plain, uninteresting and lacking in sex-appeal that she was. No, it wasn't any of those things at all that she had grown weary of. _(Insert sarcasm here.)_

Whether he realized it or not, she was doing this for his happiness and her sanity. Japan was becoming constricting, stifling and she could bear it no longer. She knew she was losing weight and sleep over it. She wasn't turning into the despicable girl she once was, this was something far worse. This was something that was literally killing her, so she decided to do something about it before she collapsed and made an embarrassment of herself.

She needed time and space to gather herself back together and what better way than an endless stream of acting, music and modeling jobs that would take her away from her troubles until her 21st birthday and maybe beyond? If she didn't think about all of her love troubles, the prospect was quite exciting and she did honestly look forward to this new adventure, that was now her life. Hopefully one day, when she decided to return to Japan, if she ever did, she would be able to deal with it more effectively. She wouldn't feel like scratching the little bitch's eyes out or, crawling into a hole to die.

* * *

Kuon was devastated. This was all his fault. It was his only explanation of her leaving, in his mind. Once again he had destroyed another precious relationship and for many weeks thereafter he would fall back into the darkness without her there this time, to pull him out. It wasn't as far as he had fallen with Rick but it had been pretty close. If he had never felt true heartbreak before, he was definitely intimately familiar with it now.


	7. Chapter 7

_**Chapter 7**_

* * *

Kanae Kotonami would be the first person to admit that she didn't care about love affairs or, affection one way or, another but the state that Ren was in and how stressed out Yuki had gotten, didn't escape her. She knew that no matter what Ren had done, Kyoko still loved him deep down. The proof was in the casual emails and texts that she had received every day from her friend and she had discovered that the object of Kyoko's affections had felt the exact same way. They had been torturing themselves unnecessarily for weeks since her best friend had left.

Kanae opened her phone to read, yet another email detailing her new life and coating it with a false sense of sweetness that Kanae could clearly see in the undertones of the conversations for the past few months. The fact that Kyoko was attempting to hide the fact that she wanted information on Ren, spoke volumes to her. "Mo... Those two idiots!" She was referring to the idiot in the States and the idiot that was now sick in the hospital in Japan and from what she could tell, both seemed to be wasting away from being so damned lovesick. "This has got to stop!" She ground out and pressed the elevator button for the top floor with a little too much force. In her mind, it was time to end this for their own good and Kyoko was not there to stop her from saying _**anything**_ this time. She didn't care if the idiot never spoke to her again, she was going to tell Lory everything and when she was thinking of everything, she literally meant every little tidbit she knew about Kyoko, Sho and Ren. Including a few little details that she had figured on her own. Some of which Lory was already aware of.

* * *

"I just don't understand why you don't do anything about this!" Kanae ranted.

Lory sighed. "Kotonami-san, I understand your concerns. Trust me on this; however, I have already tried to get those two to mend things and the most I can get out of them is the request to keep them updated on the basics of how they're doing. They both are going to have to work through this on their own. I know it's painful to watch a friend do this to themselves, but you have to realize we cannot protect them from themselves and they need to work this out on their own." He explained in the most gentle way possible. He completely understood how she felt at the moment. He felt the same way about Kuon. He wanted to keep him from falling again, but he couldn't keep protecting him from life. He wasn't going to be around forever to keep bailing him out of his darkness. Kuon was going to have to learn on his own and this was part of it.

One week later, Kanae would graduate from the LoveMe Section.

* * *

It was starting to get a little better for the pair. Time was slowly healing both on each side of the world, it had cleared their heads. They did still have moments where they would stumble and they both had nights of loneliness where they had each picked up the phone, and thumbs would hover over the send buttons, but neither would take the initiative. Kyoko, out of what she believed to be the betterment of his love life with the girl he loved and Kuon, out of what he believed to be his inability to be good enough for her.

As Kyoko had predicted, Sho did recognize that little birthmark on her left breast when he had watched her first internationally released film, _**Starshine**_. Also, as she had predicted and with much surprise, he decided it would be wise to keep his thoughts to himself on the matter, at least that's what she believed for the moment.

She couldn't have possibly been privy to the rumors going around about her when her movie came out. Lory was at his wit's end. Where on Earth had anyone gotten the idea that sweet little Kyoko-chan had been an exotic dancer by the name of Amber? It was ludicrous. What was even more ludicrous and even more unfathomable to Sho, was the reaction of the public and the effect it would have on her career.

Times change and the rumor seemed to boost her standings in everything. It made her seem that much more real to the commoners, as Sho liked to refer to the fans as. She had pulled herself from a bad situation and made something of herself. She had become an inspiration, a beacon of hope and it had put her on a multitude of International Top Ten Lists, some of which he hadn't even been aware existed. Unfortunately, it made the press dig and dig they did, but what they had found wasn't dirt on her, it was on him. His little scheme to whisper rumors about her behind doors and backstage had backfired on him phenomenally.

Questions regarding his stalker behavior, and of the incident at her school nearly a year ago flew at him relentlessly and when he denied it, he was confronted with the video proof that had been lurking the internet from the moment that it had been taken. The only reason it hadn't been revealed until that moment, was that his die-hard fans and his company had been just too adept at keeping it from others. Well, that moment was over now. He had done this to a woman that had a difficult life from the beginning, as was confirmed most ashamedly by her own mother. He had done this to a woman that was now considered number three, on the International Most Beautiful Women in the World List for her new films, modeling, music and charity work with orphans around the world, not even a week prior to his current predicament.

Picture the current portrait of a small woman, in a kimono, with her tawny hair elegantly styled, standing before a young man. Said young man with his hand on an angry red hand-print gracing his shocked, beautiful visage. This young man and older woman would be the portrait of a very livid, ashamed, irate and disappointed mother and her arrogant, self-absorbed, lazy, self-entitled son.

"Shotaro... You are finished. I have had enough. I have spoken to your agency and your uncle. You are 18 and still underage. You will move from that _**woman's**_ _(a word she spat out)_ apartment. You will return to Kyoto and you will not return to Tokyo again without my express consent until you reach the age of 20. Am I understood?" Her voice low and feral. "And I do not want to hear another derogatory comment from you about Kyoko-chan!".

It frightened him. He had never been slapped by anyone, not even Kyoko at her most angry and now his own mother had done just that. However, it obviously didn't frighten him enough to keep his thoughts on what Kyoko had done to support him, to himself. Which in turn, set Yayoi Fuwa off even more than she had already been. What came from her mouth, out of absolute anger and frustration, had completely shocked him and proved, beyond all shadow of a doubt, that he had indeed taken it too far.

"Goddammit Shotaro! Had you not treated her like garbage and hung her out to dry the moment you stepped foot in Tokyo, she wouldn't have had to resort to something like that! Do you actually believe a good girl like Kyoko-chan would willingly do something like that for fun?! You were supposed to be the man! You were supposed to take care of her, not put her in danger! At least Saena made sure she was in an environment where she would be safe and loved! You took that away from her without a single thought on it! For god's sake Shotaro! She has stalkers because of you!" She finished her rant without so much of even a hint of being out of breath from it.

"But I protected her from him!" He explained in his defense.

She shook her head in disgust. "If it hadn't been for you, she wouldn't have had him in the first place!"

He stood stunned at the truth of it.

"Now... For the last time. You will make sure to have your things and your body ready to leave in two days. If you do not, you can rest assured in the fact that you will _**never**_ be able to record another song in Japan ever again. I will let Saena-san have her way with you and trust me, she does not like you one bit. She is trying to make amends with Kyoko and she will do everything in her power to prove to that girl she means it." She warned him and left his office.

That was the moment that he realized that his plan to ruin her and return her to her proper place, had gone horribly awry. If he didn't do as his mother said, she would make sure he was blacklisted. Of that he was certain. He sighed and started picking up his personal belongings in the office and filling a box that was in the corner of the room. At least this way he would be able to return later. At least this way he was leaving show business under the guise of _"helping his family"_ as his boss and manager had suggested in the meeting that he had just returned from. It wouldn't have looked good for anyone to find out the truth of it all. Well, it wouldn't have looked good for him anyway, and he was the only one that mattered in this case.


	8. Chapter 8

_**Chapter 8**_

* * *

At four in the afternoon, a series of text messages reached her, from an unknown number as she was looking over her new script and drinking her tea, while relaxing in her back yard, recovering from jet-lag.

 **PING...**

 _[I'm Corn...]_ She groaned as soon as she opened it. Of course she knew who it was from at that very moment.

 **PING...**

 _[I know...]_ Her thumb hovered, then quickly hit send.

 **PING...**

 _[I'm sorry...]_ Why did he feel he needed to apologize to her? It was no longer her concern what he did. It never was. He didn't need to say anything to her.

 **PING...**

 _[Why?]_ She put words to her curiosity and sent it.

 **PING...**

 _[Can I call?]_

They had gone a little over a year without speaking to each other and although it was not as raw as before, the wound was still there. In her mind, she wondered if he still hadn't told the girl he loved, that he loved her. Did she really care anymore at this point? Not really. What she wanted, was the answers to the other important questions.

In his mind, he still wasn't good enough for her, but he needed to hear her voice and his soul needed her forgiveness. The time of wondering, waiting and only seeing each other in the theaters needed to come to an end. He couldn't stand the way things had been between them anymore and his decision to give her time and space had stretched him thin, wore him down. He was finished waiting in limbo.

She sat on her patio staring at the string of concise text messages. Each one responded to almost immediately. Now she had been staring at the last one for at least seven minutes, asking herself if she could handle hearing his voice without falling apart. She truly did wish to know why her childhood was a lie, not that it bothered her too much anymore, she told herself. She had accepted things the way they were a while ago. She resigned herself to the fact that people just easily lied to her and she was naive enough to believe them. The revelation caused her to make a few changes in her life and she no longer had the childlike fantasies she once had. Certainly she still thought they were cute and sweet, but they just didn't hold their charm and leave her enraptured as they once did.

It had been a little over a year since she made this discovery and she was pretty much over it. However, it did still sting a little bit and the fact he had told her that he loved her when he was pretending to be Corn still loomed in the back of her mind, making her wonder if it was all in play or, if he truly meant it. Did she really care anymore about the girl he claimed that he was in love with? She had matured. If it was the girl she thought it was, she was going to take what she wanted. She was tired of setting aside herself for everyone else. She wanted, what she wanted and like everything this past year, she was going to take it. It was an attitude that she had developed, and was encouraged by her manager shortly after arriving in the States, it had done well for her thus far. Very well for her, if one were to take into consideration the string of movies she had done and had in the works, the condo she now owned, the Aston Martin convertible she had sitting in her garage, and finally the padding in her bank account.

Of course, she wanted to know the hows and the whys of their situation. She wanted to know why he felt he couldn't trust her enough to tell her the truth from the beginning, if he had ever even considered her a friend. She wanted to know why he allowed her to believe she was alone for so long and she wanted to know if he enjoyed the tragic farce that her life had become when she was in Japan.

Was everything as meaningless to him as he had implied when he first knew and saw the stone in the stairwell? Did she truly mean that little to him, that he would lie to her for all of this time and play on her stupidity? Yes she called it stupidity, not innocence like others had. She no longer felt anger over it all, but she did feel the shame and the pain that the mistake still brought. Although, it was not as fierce as it was in the beginning, it was still there. He hadn't hounded her after his slight as Shotaro had, so she had healed a little more quickly in that aspect, but in order for it to completely go away, she needed this closure and she realized that.

 **PING...**

 _[You may...]_ She sighed in defeat and hit send.

 **RING... RING...**

She felt her heart lurch into her throat and picked up on the second ring. Before she had a chance to say anything or, question him, he spoke in a small, quiet voice filled with sadness and regret. _"I'm sorry."_

"Why, Kuon?" She asked quietly.

He sighed. _"I didn't mean to lie to you. Not you. Never you. I was scared. I didn't want the one person in the world that believed in me to hate me for what I had become. I didn't want to disappoint you and ruin everything... Like I ended up doing anyway."_ He said defeatedly.

She nodded silently and made a noncommittal sound.

" _Kyoko... I can't do this over the phone. Can we... Can we meet somewhere?"_ He plead hesitantly.

She furrowed her brow. "Are you in L.A.?"

He was silent for a moment. _"Kinda... I'm visiting my parents for a few weeks."_ He told her quietly.

She groaned inwardly. Something in her mind was telling her that this was a phenomenally bad idea if she didn't wish to make the commitment of completely forgiving him quite yet, but she did want answers. She closed her eyes and took a dive and gave him her address in North Hollywood and the pseudonym she was living under. "Just tell the security guard the password. That should get you through the gate to my condo."

" _Thanks Kyoko... Um... I should be there in about 30 to 45 minutes. My parents live in Pasadena."_ He paused for a moment. _"Have you had dinner?"_

She snorted at the question. "You of all people asking me _**that**_ question... Have you?" Talking to him again felt so natural to her.

" _Not yet... I can pick something up."_ He answered in the hopes of sharing a meal with her to break the ice.

She groaned. "As much as I hate takeout, I'm going to have to take you up on your offer. I just got back from Miami, and I had to pick up Tora from the kennel. I haven't even had the chance to take a shower or, buy groceries yet." She sighed staring at her teacup sitting on her script, on her side-table.

He chuckled. _"There's a place close to me that serves healthy. I'll pick something up from there. Shouldn't take long. So... In that case... I suppose I'll see you in an hour?"_

"Okay... An hour." She agreed quietly.

" _Umm... Bye, Kyoko."_ He thought she had ended the call and softly whispered. _"I love you."_

She pressed the end button with tears streaming down her cheeks and the large, bronze, tabby-striped Maine Coon cat jumping into her lap, softly purring and snuggling his mommy to comfort her. "Mommy's so weak, Tora-chan." She told him and nuzzled his forehead before heading in to get ready.

* * *

It's amazing what an almost scalding hot shower will do for you when your emotions are in a turmoil. It loosens tensed muscles, washes away bad thoughts and the steam clears your mind. She exited the long, hot shower feeling less jet-lagged and considerably more clear headed. Less wounded and more relaxed. She didn't feel like a trapped animal in the situation anymore.

She slipped on her silk robe and towel-dried her hair that was now half-way down her back and bleached to a strawberry-blonde for her next role. She combed it out and put it in a loose braid. She then put on her deodorant and spritzed on her favorite jasmine, citrus and sandalwood body spray.

She had developed the habit of wearing makeup whenever she was around other people, due to the attention she had started getting when she stayed in New York for three months, for the filming of her second movie, her concert tour and her modeling jobs. So, she took a little bit of extra time after her shower to brush on some blush, line her eyes, add some mascara and dab on a little lip color.

Without even thinking about it, she had taken up the better part of the hour that it would take Kuon to reach her home and he was now buzzing the doorbell.

"SHIT!" She tightened the belt on her mid-thigh length, black silk robe and ran downstairs to the door. "Just a second!" She called out, almost tripped over Tora-chan in the process, then stubbed her toe on the sideboard in the hallway. She hissed at the pain, causing Tora to run upstairs and hide.

" _ **FUCK THAT HURT!"**_ Kuon heard her curse through the door and chuckled inwardly. He shook his head. _Only she can make something like_ _ **that**_ _sound cute._

His beautiful, cursing goddess opened the door to him smiling while holding up a bag of healthy takeout. "I come in peace." He chuckled.

"Sorry..." She apologized a little embarrassed. "I stubbed my toe." She explained, not noticing that he had instinctively looked down at her foot and caught a glimpse of her amazing legs cute polished toes, and a flash of exposed cleavage, as she took the bag and led him to her kitchen. "Plates are in the left, top cabinet and the silverware is in that drawer." She pointed to the drawer beneath the counter, under the overhead cabinet where she kept the dishes. "I'll be right back." She told him as she headed up the stairs to her bedroom and the largest house-cat he had ever seen, came loping down the same steps from his hiding place and into the kitchen, to investigate the new human, get a drink of water and possibly try to con said human into feeding him whatever smelled really good in those containers.

Kuon sat at the counter after gathering the needed cutlery and dishes for dinner and swallowed nervously as he remembered the accidental flash he had gotten when she had greeted him at the door, hopping on one foot. He sincerely hoped that she didn't always answer the door like that. _Although, she does live in a gated community. She probably doesn't have many strangers knocking on her door._ He got up and grabbed two glasses from the cupboard, after deciding that he needed something to wet his now parched throat, then chuckled at what he found in her refrigerator: a half-empty bottle of top shelf vodka, a few unopened small bottles of cranberry juice, a nearly empty bottle of orange juice, a small container of strawberry yogurt and a half-liter of spoiled milk.

She finally came downstairs dressed in a pair of tiny blue shorts, a pink crop-top and a pair of scrunchy socks, as he was filling the glasses with ice. She grabbed one of the iced glasses from him and set it on the counter. She pulled the vodka and couple of small bottles of cranberry juice from the refrigerator. She held up the vodka. "Want some?" She smirked. She wanted it to relax her newly frayed nerves caused by the realization that she had answered the door minus her undergarments.

He nodded. "Yeah, thanks." He gave her a curious look. "Where did you get it? I thought the drinking age was still 21 here."

She laughed. "My manager, Josie got it for me. I don't drink it too much. Just every now and then to unwind." She wanted to avoid the main subject until after dinner and drinks. She wanted to be loose and relaxed for anything he had to say. She didn't want to overreact or, feel the pain while he was genuinely trying to make an effort to mend things between them. She had given her mother and Shotaro a chance, even though they decided not to take it, she felt it was the least she could do for him.


	9. Chapter 9

_**Chapter 9**_

* * *

He had told her everything. They say confession is good for the soul and that would be correct. One would think that his lie would have overshadowed the reason for it; however, her time spent in Hollywood and New York as an actress, a model and a musician had taught her quite a bit about the life of a young entertainer. During her year she had seen and learned the ins and outs of marketing herself and she had encountered her fair share of less than reputable sleaze. She considered herself lucky that her manager Josie, had pulled her ass out of the fire as many times as he did or, she quite possibly would have suffered what Kuon had, probably many times over.

She had met many young talents that had become victims of the casting couch. Kuon didn't need to tell her the implications or, the fate of a little boy that looked beyond his years being forced to do those things, to get a part he wasn't ready for. He didn't need to elaborate on the damage that something like that would do, she had seen the empty eyes and broken souls of some of her very good friends that she had now. It made her even more thankful that her boss was Lory Takarada and her agency was LME International. She knew in her heart that if she had ever gone with Akatoki, the very same thing would have quite possibly happened to her.

She saw what the hunger for fame had done to Sho. It had twisted her childhood friend and made him into something that she never wanted to see again. It saddened her that Kuon had dealt with that from the very beginning and had it compounded with the fame of his parents, and his friends that were a warehouse of very bad advice.

Those were her thoughts as he finished his confession and he waited quietly for her final judgment. "I... I understand, Kuon."

He cleared his throat and looked at her in surprise. He hadn't even told Lory or, his parents the extent of what he had experienced. "You don't hate me?" He asked in a small insecure voice, feeling broken and too dirty to be near her. "After Rick and everything else."

She sighed and took his hands in hers. "I was very angry with you for a long time and I thought you were making fun of me, but I understand. It hurts to know that someone I love had to go through those things." She explained.

"But... Everything was my fault." He told her.

She shook her head and forced him to look into her eyes. "Kuon, when things like that happen to women... the blame falls on those that committed the crimes, but when they happen to boys and young men, no one listens. I'm listening and I'm saying that you did nothing wrong. You were wounded and you acted as expected. I don't hate you Kuon, I never did. I couldn't no matter how hard I tried, and trust me, I tried." She chuckled wryly. "It only made it worse."

He wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. _"I love you so much, Kyoko."_ He murmured.

She nuzzled into him. "I love you too... Please, don't ever lie to me again."

He nodded. "I promise I won't, Bo." He gave her a small kiss an felt her freeze up a little.

Her eyes flew wide open and she pulled away a little to look at him. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. When did you find out?"

He sighed and gave her a small smile as he stroked her cheek. Hikaru told me when I went to look for Bo, to get advice on finally telling you that I loved you. Bo had been so helpful before and I wanted to let him know I was going to put my stage name to rest and tell you everything, but then I couldn't reach you before you left."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you this time." She whispered.

He shook his head. "No, this is something I needed to do on my own. So... I'm kinda glad you weren't." He confessed.

* * *

He spent the night in her guest room, she insisted. He agreed and brought his emergency, overnight bag in from his car. They had both had drinks and she didn't want him risking being stopped late at night with vodka in his system. The next morning she slipped out as he slept, after her workout, and picked up a few things to get them past breakfast and lunch, she would head out later in the day for any real groceries. After breakfast, they would spend the rest of the day with each other catching up on things that were happening in the US for him, and in Japan for her.

"I don't know if your manager told you or, not but there's been some things going around about you... I think I know who started them, but I really can't be sure. Boss has been spinning them in your favor and so has your mom." He told her as he handed her a final dish and let the water out of the sink.

She sighed. "If you're talking about..."

"Kyoko, I've known for awhile... I don't care. What pisses me off is that he tried to use that against you." He told her in a low voice.

She sighed in resignation. "I really don't care about that anymore. He'll probably just try to use it again and then he'll make it a point to come and find me to harass me some more. Josie will take care of it. It's not like it's the first rumor he's had to deal with for me." Yes, rumors do fly when you're a beautiful, friendly, polite Hollywood starlet. This would not be Josie's first scandal to handle for Kyoko and she was grateful for the skilled assist.

He dried his hands and pulled out his phone then navigated to a familiar entertainment website. He handed her the phone. "Here read this. I don't think you'll need to worry about him anymore." He smirked. Lory had called him and told him a couple of days ago, the day before Kyoko had returned from her trip.

She read through half of the article that he had shown her and she snorted when she came to a certain part. "Taking time to spend with his family, my ass... Oba Yayoi probably dragged him back to Kyoto by his ear with the way he was acting."

When she started to hand his phone back to him, after she had finished, he pulled up another article. "You really need to read this one too." He said softly then stood behind her and wrapped her in his arms, bracing for the impact of the story.

As she read, first he felt her tense up, then reading further she began to tremble, and finally the quiet sobs. _"Ok_ _ā_ _san."_ She whispered.

He hugged her tightly and gently kissed her temple. "Shh... It's okay Love. It's okay."

She turned into him and cried into his shirt, like she did that night in the park. "She didn't have to do that Kuon. Why did she do that? It will ruin her and it's all because of a stupid job! It's all my fault!"

"Kyoko... Sweetheart... It's not as bad as you think. Here, hand me the phone... I'll show you." He gently took the phone from her and pulled up the most recent story about her and her mother. "Now read this one."

It was a story of an orphan that had grown up on the streets. How she had found a way to put herself through school and college to become a lawyer. How she had fallen in love and had been deceived. After the man had used her and left her, she had discovered she was pregnant. Unable to get the proper care it was too late to do anything about the pregnancy. After having her baby she had suffered from severe postpartum depression and made the decision to send the baby to live with a family that she thought would give her the love and care that she felt she wasn't mature enough to give.

It told how proud she was of that beautiful, intelligent, loving, mature little girl and because of this, she wanted her to have the freedom to make her own decisions. So, she signed her emancipation papers as a late birthday gift. She knew that her daughter would make better decisions than she ever could for her. She told in the article that it was the only way that she knew of, to let her know that she did love her but, didn't know how to make it up to her.

They sat on her kitchen floor for what seemed like hours in each other's arms, just quietly holding each other and absorbing the remedies for their damaged souls.

Tora had finally made another appearance and decided to get in on the snuggle-fest. "Meow..." He pushed his head into Kuon's hand and Kyoko pet him, giving the attention he was demanding. She sighed softly.

"I think he likes you..." She gave a small smile and a little giggle. "He doesn't even like Josie and he says he's a cat person." He had lightened the mood to a level that was far more comfortable than it had been before.

Kuon chuckled and gently scratched under the large cat's chin. "Hello Tora-kun. My name is Kuon. I love your mommy very much. I hope you don't mind." He smiled softly as Tora began to purr, flopped down next to them and rolled over to have his long belly rubbed.


	10. Chapter 10

_**Chapter 10**_

* * *

He hated being forced to stay in Kyoto for the next, almost two and a half years. What made everything worse was the fact that just before his parents forced him out of entertainment, he had seen her in her movie right before he had left. Now he was here, stuck without the resources he needed to find her. Shoko wouldn't answer any of his calls, she was no longer his manager. Mimori had dumped him, HIM... She had dumped him! The little fame-whore wanted nothing to do with him now that he wasn't the number one recording artist! Of all the nerve! Even worse than all of that? The stupid girls that had worshiped him when he was in Jr. High, were now hooked on Kyoko and Kuon/Ren.

He was thoroughly disgusted by it all. He was forced to endure it everyday now that his parents were forcing him to go to high school in Kyoto. They could have at least let him home school or, something to avoid the indignity of it all. He was starting to regret not paying more attention to his classes when he was in Tokyo. Everything seemed so much harder without his little hangers-on doing his homework for him and he was starting to fail the classes that they had placed him in. He was a year and a half behind what he was in Tokyo, due to his busy schedule as an entertainer. Now they wanted to hold him back another, due to his below average performance in English, Math and History. They even had the gall to fail him in PhysEd! Why did he even need that one? He had a perfect body! Shoko never told him that Akatoki had a special arrangement with the school he attended in Tokyo. As it stood, because of this arrangement, he was a year behind Kyoko and Mimori and now the high school he was currently attending wanted to hold him back a year.

The least his parents could have done, was give him a cute tutor but no... It had to be a nerdy guy! Even a nerdy girl would have been better than that. Even Kyoko would have been better, but no... _She has to be whoring around in America, using her body to get movie parts and fans._ _That has to be the only reason they listen to her grating voice. Some people have no class or, taste at all._ He shook his head at that thought. Funny thing was, even though he had heard that she had made it into the top international entertainers, he had never forced himself to listen to her sing. If he saw a video, he wouldn't click on it. When the DJ announced it he would turn the station or, leave the room. If anyone played it around him, he would tune it out. _Why bother listening to bad music?_ He would ask himself.

"Shotaro! Are you doing your homework?" His mother called from the hallway in front of his bedroom.

He quickly hid the notebook he used for songwriting under his mattress and opened his English workbook. "Yeah, yeah... I'm doing it." He groused. If his mother found him working on that little treasure before his schoolwork was done, she told him she would burn it.

Satisfied with his answer, she started to go back to her work. "Don't forget, dinner is in an hour."

"Okay..." He responded as he listened to her footsteps fade down the hall and take the stairs away from him. He sighed in relief. _That was close._

* * *

She turned in his arms after Tora-chan had left them alone and kissed his cheek, then snuggled back into him. "I think we need to get ready." She giggled.

"Get ready for what?" He asked curiously.

"Well... You still haven't had a shower or, called your parents and I still have to submit my schoolwork online this morning." She glanced up at him.

"Hmmm... I think I'd like to stay here, just like this." He murmured into her hair and gently kissed her crown.

"So... You're going to stay in your pajamas all day?" She poked his shoulder playfully.

He looked up in thought. "Hmmm, I don't know. That's sounding awfully appealing this morning." He gave her a little squeeze and she laughed.

"Well... I can't. I still haven't finished my schoolwork this morning." She scolded and started to get up and he pulled her back down. "Kuon~" She whined.

He chuckled and kissed her cheek. "Okay, okay." and finally let her up, but grabbed her hand and looked up at her. "I do love you."

She smiled brightly, leaned down and kissed his cheek. "I love you, too."

* * *

After speaking to his son and thinking of everything he had been told, he felt horrible. He had never intended for Kyoko-chan to feel used like that. It explained quite a bit, in his mind though. He and Juli had known that Kyoko was living in the States from the moment she stepped foot in New York, then Los Angeles. He was a little wounded at the time, when she didn't contact him. Now he knew why. He really needed to make it up to her. He and Lory had done quite a bit of damage, in his eyes. He had filed himself and Lory into the category of her mother and her ex-friend a long time ago for their slights against her.

After Kuu had explained the situation and its origins to Juli, she was livid. "How could you and that idiot do that to that poor girl?" She hissed at him. "I never thought you two would be capable of using someone like that. Especially after what you've suspected that she's been through."

Kuu groaned. "I know, I know. I should have said no and told Boss to find another way. I'm sorry Honey." His voice thick with remorse. He felt like the lowest of the low.

She caressed his cheek and kissed him. "I'm not the one you should apologize to Kuu."

He sighed. "I know..."

She patted the cheek she kissed. "Good, because you'll get your chance tonight when Kuon brings her over to meet us."

His eyes went wide with surprise. "Is that where he's been since yesterday?"

She nodded and giggled. "Of course..." She started writing down the menu for the cook to look over for dinner. "He asked me for advice on what to do the day before yesterday. Why else did you think Margot was cooking tonight?" She showed him the menu. "I really don't think my cooking has improved that much over the years." Of course she knew she was a horrible cook. It was why she hadn't cooked for anyone during Kuon's time there and also the reason she hadn't complained about Kuu taking over the kitchen while her son was visiting. After Kuon had left, she had tried many times to learn from television shows, classes and even personal tutoring, to no avail. She wasn't about to poison her son, his potential wife or, anyone else tonight.

~xoxo~

She stared at him nervously after his question. _I can't do this. What will they think of me? I've avoided them since I left Japan. It was a blatant disrespect. I did it on purpose, I know it, they'll surely know it. They'll hate me and tell me to stay away from Kuon._

Her wide, troubled eyes shot to him immediately, as she felt his gentle touch on her cheek. "Kyoko... I know what you're thinking. I can tell by that look on your beautiful face." He smiled softly and shook his head. "They aren't going to hate you. If anything, they're probably worried you'll hate them."

"But..." She started nervously.

"Kyoko... Please trust me on this. They won't hate you. Please? I really want you to meet my mom, and Dad is really looking forward to seeing you again. Please, come with me to have dinner with them tonight?" He practically begged with his familiar abandoned puppy eyes.

Kyoko groaned then pouted. How could she ever resist that? She nodded shakily. "Okay..." She told him in a small voice.

He swept her into a tight hug. "I promise you won't regret it." He kissed her cheek and gave her a big smile. Tonight would be dinner with the Hizuri Family. What on Earth was she going to wear?


	11. Chapter 11

_**Chapter 11**_

* * *

The drive to Pasadena was tense for her. She wasn't sure what to expect, they were his parents after all. For Kuu to like her and treat her as his own child when he was in Japan was one thing, but to be introduced as Kuon's potential lover? That was an entirely different matter. Even more troublesome was the unknown variable that was Juli Hizuri. The only encounters she had ever had with mothers had been her own and Yayoi. One was sometimes openly hostile to her own flesh and blood; the other kept Kyoko at a distance and trained her to be a wife. Kyoko didn't even want to think of what the woman thought of her now that everything was out. Hell, she definitely didn't want to know what Juli thought of her either, it couldn't be good. What mother would approve of their son giving his love and attention to a stripper? She sighed, breaking the silence of the car.

"You okay, Kyoko?" He asked with a little concern.

"Yeah... Just thinking, that's all." She lied. Of course she wasn't okay! She was a bundle of worried, frayed nerves.

He sighed one of his familiar sighs. "Talk to me... I know you aren't."

She groaned. She felt more insecure than she had in awhile. "I'm worried about meeting your parents..." She told him as she worried her lip and nervously played with her nails.

He smiled softly and glanced at her from the corner of his eye, then took her hand in his right one as they drove closer to their destination. He brought her hand to his lips and left a little kiss. "You don't need to worry so much. Dad loves you and I'm pretty sure my mom will too."

She gave him a small smile and a nod. She would reserve judgment for later and hope for the best.

* * *

The greeting and the visit was more than she could have ever hoped for and she felt drowned in the love that was exuding from Kuon's parents. They made her feel so accepted and less of the intruder she had initially considered herself. At dinner the conversation steered towards the reasoning behind the additional skills in her acting repertoire.

"You're voice is stunning Kyoko. Why didn't you start with music instead of acting?" Juli asked curiously. This was a question that Kuon had thought many times in the past year as he loaded every song onto his player the moment it was available.

She sighed. "Honestly, I really didn't think that I had that talent until Nakazawa-san brought it to Takarada-san's attention. I was always told that I didn't have what it took to do it, so I just never picked it up." She told them candidly.

Kuu shook his head. "Whomever told you that is tone-deaf. I have a strong feeling you could do just about anything if you decide that's what you want to do. I mean seriously, you learned stage combat in less than two weeks for your roll in Sacred Lotus and that is no easy feat. It takes months to get to the level you were at for filming." He commented as he shoveled another plate of food into his abyss-like gullet.

Kuon snorted. "I would have to agree with you on that one Dad. The person that told her that, I would say, is far below her level and in my opinion too lazy to do anything about it."

Kyoko rolled her eyes, but agreed on the lazy part. Sho had never worked a day in his life on anything other than his music. He hadn't the slightest idea what manual labor was about.

* * *

Cuts on his hands, blisters on his feet, dirt under his nails and sweat pouring from his brow. What on Earth did he do to get himself into this mess? _Oh... That's right. I was a selfish ass that wanted to ruin Kyoko for my benefit and now I'm paying for it in spades_. He reminded himself as he assisted the workers, under his father's order, with the renovations and upgrades to the ryokan.

It wasn't that he was finally accepting his fate to be the next Taisho, no he was fighting that tooth and nail. It was the fact that his own parents made it very clear to him that if he didn't get off his ass, make acceptable grades in school, help out in the ryokan and train in cooking, he would never see the skyline of Tokyo again and he would be completely cut off from his family with nowhere to go. Helping out at the ryokan was doing wonders for his image and at the moment, it was something that needed work on.

When he had left Tokyo with his parents, the rumors started to fly. Pictures and videos of his many encounters with Kyoko had finally emerged. Mimori sang like a bird about what she knew and the little kidnapping incident that Shoko-san had thought was a date with Kyoko. That damn dog Reino, from Vie Ghoul and several of his acquaintances spoke out about his violent, threatening behavior in Karuizawa and even one of Sho's own band members confirmed it. He cursed himself for ever letting that little brag session slip.

He had to admit, this little soul-searching _"Hiatus"_ was indeed doing wonders for his short temper though. After replacing 3 shattered floor to ceiling wall mirrors, patching 14 fist and foot holes in various walls and the many furniture repairs he had made from tossing things about in anger, he began to think twice before letting his anger control him.

Everything that he had to replace, came out of his own pocket and as of the moment, his pockets were quite empty. His parents had been particularly tight-fisted when it came to paying him for work done. Everything he did was expected to be, what he now referred to as _"Kyoko quality"_ , more commonly referred to as perfect. He had once thought of her as some sort of _"Little Miss Mary Sue Perfect"_ , but he was now seeing exactly what she had put herself through to get those results. She worked. _**She worked hard**_ and pushed herself beyond what normal people would. Her motivation was quite similar to what his was now.

He now understood that fear of losing a place to lay your head if you didn't complete the task; although, his was completely founded. His parents would have never tossed her aside like he and her mother did. It hurt to think that as a small child, she had felt the way he did now and it scorched his insides with guilt knowing that he had brought her fears to fruition when he glibly told Shoko how he felt about her all that time ago. He determined that if he every had the fortune to meet her again, he would most certainly apologize sincerely for all of the hardships he had put her through and try to make it up to her in some way.

* * *

"So... When do you have to go back to work?" He asked quietly as they stood on her front porch with arms wrapped around each other in early evening light.

She snuggled into him and smiled. "Not until next week. Why?"

He kissed her forehead gently and caressed her back. "Oh... I just wanted to spend a little time with you before I have to go back."

She sighed and gave him a cute frown, then nodded.

"It won't be for long. I just have to finish up my one drama I'm working on... that will be a couple of weeks and then I have a new project I'll be starting on here." He quickly explained.

She looked up at him surprised. "You'll be here?"

He chuckled and gave her a quick small kiss on her nose. "Yep... and after that one, a few others."

She let out a sigh of relief and looked up at him curiously. "So... what does that mean?"

"That means..." He began showering her with tiny kisses. "That I would like to spend as much time with you as I can, for as long as you will allow me. Now and when I come back." He pulled back a little to look into her eyes. "I'm thinking long-term, Kyoko. Is that okay?"

She hugged him tightly and smiled with little tears. "That is very okay, Kuon. I would like that."

He felt like his heart was an overinflated balloon. He smiled widely and pulled her into a kiss filled with every ounce of feeling in his body. "I love you." He told her as he pulled away from her slightly.

"I love you too." She stammered, blushing brightly.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" He needed to get out of there and go home or, he would never be able to leave.

She nodded dazedly and that was the true beginning of something that she realized she had never really felt. Something far more powerful than she had ever felt with Sho.


	12. Chapter 12

_**Chapter 12**_

* * *

One year, one intimate quiet proposal, and one wedding later, the pair was finally where they wanted to be. With each other. There were still a few differences of opinion, but nothing that couldn't be discussed and worked out on a later date. The subject had been broached many times by Kuu and Juli, in an attempt to convince her that there wasn't a single individual on the planet that would ever be ready to have children.

Kyoko was terrified of that particular prospect. She didn't exactly have the best example in the beginning, but as she thought more on it, she realized that the Fuwa's were actually very parental to her and it made her realize that Shotaro was more of a brother than anything else to her. That thought actually gave her the creeps when she realized that she had thought of marrying him at one point. She wouldn't dream of doing the things with him that she and Kuon did. She found herself thinking of how she had dodged that bullet many times. She even considered the prospect of thanking him for being the ass that he was and thanking Yayoi for treating her like a daughter.

* * *

Lips gently caressed silken skin, fingers danced over sensitive pressure points, a quiet moan of passion, a possessive growl of lust, erotic smells of excitement and taste of the forbidden. It was the same as when they had first made love on their wedding night and the passion had not abated. Every touch left the other craving more of the feel of skin on skin. Both hoped that it would never wane and always feel as new as it did in that moment. The moment that feels like a fire is building slowly in one's body, gradually turning into an inferno, creeping closer to a powder keg to release into a mind blowing explosion and finally to have one floating in an ethereal cloud of complete satisfaction and pleasure in the end, just before one dozes off into a paradise of dreams.

It had been 7 months since that first afternoon, night and morning. A total of almost 12 hours straight of nothing but pure pleasure, only stopping to replenish their energies with sustenance. Now one might balk at the thought of 12 hours of almost non-stop sex, but it is possible and with the Emperor and the Empress holding court, it was a guarantee.

Anyway, it had been 7 months since their wedding night and for the first time her body was completely sore. Her breasts felt like they were on fire, her hips ached, her stomach muscles felt like she had just done an hour of crunches and the mere thought of food sent her running to the bathroom to say her prayers to the porcelain god. It was Saturday and also the first morning that Kuon had experienced this with her. He had early mornings all the prior week and had left for filming several hours before dawn.

"Are you okay?" He asked with worry as he held her hair away from her face and gently rubbed her back.

She dry-heaved for the sixth time then nodded.

"You don't sound very okay. I'm taking you to the doctor." He insisted.

She groaned in protest. "It's just a little bug, Corn. I'll be fine in an hour."

He furrowed his brow. "An hour?"

She nodded. "It's only been happening in the mornings. I'll be fine after I drink some peppermint tea."

He cocked an eyebrow. "You're going to the doctor anyway." He told her as he wet a washcloth and handed it to her.

"But it only happens in the mornings and then I'm fine." She really didn't want to miss work next week due to a silly cold.

He sighed. "Kyoko..." He lightly poked her forehead with his index finger to get her focus. "Think about what you just said. You've been sore all over. You've been tired no matter how much sleep you get and you just told me that you've been sick like this in the mornings for how long?"

She pouted. "I don't know, a couple of weeks?"

He shook his head, closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He chuckled, remembering how stubborn he was the first time he got sick and the little argument they shared. This was so similar. "Love... I think you're pregnant." He decided it was best to rip off the bandage.

"I AM NOT! Kuon! How could you even think that? We've been using two forms of birth control. How is that even possible?" She bellowed in disbelief.

He gently grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into a hug to calm her. "Calm down. I could be wrong, but it wouldn't kill you to go to the doctor. If you aren't pregnant, then she can tell you why you've been sick like this and help."

She pouted and almost started crying at the thought. "What if I am?" She asked in a small voice.

"Then we will do the best that we can and learn as much as we can before our little fairy prince or, princess decides to join us." He told her soothingly. He knew to phrase it in such a way to appeal to her fantasy loving side. It would ease the blow of the news to come.

She sighed softly, a little more relaxed about the idea of it all. "Okay."

"Good you get cleaned up and I'll call our doctor to see if she can see us today." He pointed to the shower as he left his pouting wife in the bathroom.

"Fine..." She grumbled as she grabbed her toothbrush and started her morning routine.

He chuckled and went to look for his cell phone.

* * *

The months went by after the joyous news of their new arrival and she had finally accepted that with her new husband, she could conquer this new trial in her life. She was actually looking forward to meeting their new family members. At this point in their lives one would find the pair packing up the male's apartment in Tokyo where she had first met the Emperor of the Night.

"KUON?! What the hell is this?" The irritated little pixie yelled from the bedroom to her husband as they were packing up his apartment, for his final move to Los Angeles. They had been living there on and off when they came to Tokyo occasionally. Soon they would need more room and the apartment just wouldn't be big enough.

She sounded angry. He sighed wondering what he did as he came through the doorway to see what she was referring to. In her hand was a pair of black, lace cheeky panties. He chuckled and a lusty smirk crossed his lips. "Don't you remember Babe?"

She gave him a confused look.

He snaked his arms around her and deftly snatched the little treasure from her. "You gave those to me for my 20th birthday." He leaned in, nipped her ear and the Emperor whispered. _"Wouldn't mind seeing you in those again... Amber."_ Then kissed his blushing, pregnant queen soundly.

"Oh..." She stuttered. "I forgot about that."

He chuckled and kissed her again as he placed the little treasure in his pocket. "Best birthday ever, now that I look back on it." He smirked. "I might need to return the favor. What do you think?"

She swatted his shoulder and kissed his cheek. "You're terrible." She turned and whispered, "I'll think about it." as she started packing up another box with a cheeky smile.

He swatted her behind. "I'm looking forward to it." He purred into her ear and grabbed the box she had just closed and taped for the movers, then blew her a kiss.


	13. Epilogue

_**Epilogue:**_

* * *

"Dude! We can't go in there. That's Dad's office. He keeps it locked for a reason." Kuon Hizuri, Jr. scolded his twin brother Richard and their friend Danny as they finally unlocked the door.

"Pfft... You're too uptight." He teased. "Just like Mom. I just want a little peek." Rick told him mischievously. "It's not like we're going to find anything life-changing in there anyway. It's probably just a collection of all his old scripts and movies."

Kuon groaned and Danny laughed.

"Aren't you a little curious?" Danny asked as Rick slowly opened the door and the three fifteen year-olds slipped into the darkened room and quickly shut the door behind them. Rick flipped on the light and the three were greeted by a life-sized poster of the most interesting and probably the most traumatic thing they had ever seen in there entire lives.

Kuon was speechless. Rick's eyes were as big as saucers and Danny was blown away. "DUDE! Who is that? She's a fox!" Danny exclaimed as Kuon and Rick groaned in agony trying to recover their eyesight.

Kuon mumbled something.

Danny turned to him after pealing his eyes away from the large poster of the stunning female, wrapped around a stripper pole, dressed in black lace panties, silk stockings, platform heels with bare breasts. "What?"

Rick grabbed Danny and he and Kuon shoved him out of the room, quickly turned off the light and re-locked the door. The twins were pale and Danny was stunned by the behavior. "So? Who was that?"  
Kuon was sitting on the floor against the wall trying to burn the image from his mind and Rick was pacing back and forth mumbling, "Dad's going to kill us if he finds out." over and over.

Danny grabbed Rick's shoulder. "Rick, who was that?"

Kuon groaned again. "It was MOM!"

Danny just laughed at his friends. "Holy Shit! I knew your mom was hot but... Shit. You guys are so lucky!"

Kuon and Rick just looked at him with mouths agape as Danny ranted on about their hot mom. Kuon stood up and cuffed Danny on the back of his head. "Fucking shut up! You can't tell anyone about what you saw. Our dad will kill us if he finds out we were in there."

Danny chuckled. "Relax man. Not a word." He promised.

For the first time in their young lives, the Hizuri twins, carbon copies of their father in every way but one, were not hungry that afternoon.

 _ **~fin~**_


End file.
